The present invention generally relates to row crop cultivators used in farming, particularly to optional accessories for row crop cultivators, specifically to optional accessories for row crop cultivators which cut away the soil adjacent to the row of plants being cultivated, and more specifically to cultivator cutaways utilizing dual disc blades.
Row crops are routinely cultivated one or more times during the growing season. As part of the cultivation operation, it is often desirable to generally vertically cut the soil on opposite sides of the row and additionally to move the soil outwardly such as in a ridging procedure. This is conventionally accomplished utilizing dual disc blades located on opposite sides of the row. It can then be appreciated that it is necessary to raise the disc blades as well as the shovel gangs from the soil during transport and/or turning of the cultivator. Thus, it is conventional for the dual disc blades to be mounted on and movable with the shovel gangs. However, use of the dual disc blades is not desired or necessary for all row crops or cultivation operations. Rather than remove the dual disc blades from the cultivators, it is desirable to move the dual disc blades to an inoperative position so that the dual disc blades do not engage the soil surface independent of the position of the shovel gangs. Due to their conventional mounting to the shovel gangs, all of the weight of the dual disc blade cutaway assembly is then carried by the shovel gangs. Thus weight distribution on the shovel gangs varies when the dual discs are in their operative positions and some of their weight is transferred to the soil surface or in their inoperative positions where all of their weight is carried by the shovel gang. This variation in weight distribution can affect the cultivation function of the particular gang. Additionally, the dual disc blade cutaway assemblies are typically not provided on each of the gangs, with a first gang carrying assemblies for both of the rows between which it is positioned for balancing from side to side and the gangs on the opposite sides being free of cutaway assemblies. Thus, operation between gangs is not consistent due to the variation in weight load between gangs, which is further varied depending upon whether the cutaway assemblies are in their operative or inoperative positions.
Thus, a need exists to allow the use of cutaway assemblies which are movable with and by the gang assemblies but which do not negatively impact the operation of the gang assemblies. In particular, it would be desirable for the gang assemblies to operate in the similar manner whether or not cutaway assemblies are provided and independent of the position of the cutaway assemblies.